The central government has temporarily postponed the second phase of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation's (DGCA) new Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) regulations. Under these regulations, pilots and cabin crew were mandated to have 48 consecutive hours of weekly rest. However, the old rule will now apply, meaning only 36 hours of rest every seven days.

The new regulations were designed to reduce pilot fatigue and improve flight safety. The first phase was scheduled to be implemented from July 1, 2025, and the second from November 1, 2025.

With the implementation of the second phase, IndiGo, the country's largest airline, suddenly faced a significant crew shortage as existing staff were unable to perform duties according to the new rest rules.

As a result, IndiGo had to cancel more than 1,200 flights in the last four to five days. Hundreds of flights are being canceled daily at major airports, including Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Pune.

Passengers have been stranded at airports for more than 24-30 hours. In many places, there were fights and scuffles between passengers and airline staff over water, food, and seating.

This crisis also affected fares. Other airlines took advantage of the situation and increased fares several times. On December 6th, the cheapest air ticket on the Delhi-Bengaluru route exceeded ₹40,000, and in some cases, reached ₹80,000.

According to DGCA data, 755 IndiGo flights were cancelled in November alone due to FDTL regulations. IndiGo had requested an exemption from the DGCA until February 10, 2026, and has promised to normalize the situation by hiring additional crew within the next three months.

For now, the government has allowed all airlines, including IndiGo, to operate under the old 36-hour rule.